Today I welcome a good friend of mine to 30 Days of Promo Goodness! Abbey MacInnis is a fellow author from The Way Back Home anthology as well as the author of new release His Fifth Avenue Thief. Along with contemporary romance, she writes historical, paranormal and erotic romance. Whether she’s being swept off her feet by a Medieval knight, regency rake, or cowboy or cop, her heroes are always strong men who’ll love their women unconditionally. On most days, Abbey can be found at her computer, penning her latest tale. A tale where love, respect, and passion combine to create a satisfying and happy ending. Guaranteed. She invites you to step in to the pages of her romances, to leave your worries behind and get swept up in her world.
Take it away, Abbey....
Thanks to Amber for having me here today and tomorrow. I’ve been reading all the wonderful posts on promotion, and found them helpful and interesting. I have nothing earth-shattering to share or promo secrets hidden up my sleeve. *g* Don’t I wish.
I try to think of promoting in a positive way. Yes, I’m promoting my books and my brand, but to me, it’s more than that. So rather than thinking of promoting as a way to just get your name out there, it’s about interacting with readers and fellow writers.
I have a website with newsletter sign up, and some of the social networking accounts such as:
Facebook fan page. Twitter and Goodreads. I also participate on the Kindle boards. I also have an
a Amazon author page, which is very important to have if your books are on Amazon. My blog
is a very recent venture I’ve started. I swore up and down I wouldn’t create one I finally caved after reading author Kristen Lamb’s books on social networking.
If you haven’t heard of Kristen, I strongly recommend her. After reading her books, I was really able to grasp what brand really is, and what mine is, and how to effectively promote myself while still having time to write.
Before reading Kristen’s books, I didn’t have a marketing focus. I’d occasionally send out a tweet and/or update my Facebook profile, but I wouldn’t interact on either of them religiously. As for a blog? Right, I have nothing to say that anyone would care to read. I learned that I need to be active in social media. I just didn’t know how to do this. I’d feel overwhelmed when I’d think of having to get out there and talk about my books. But my books aren’t what I’m promoting. I’m promoting myself. Readers won’t always remember stories, but they’ll remember the author if you take the time to interact with them.
Promoting can seem very frightening, but if you have a specific focus and yes, a plan, it’s not bad at all.
I take a few minutes each day to update my Facebook and Twitter statuses with content related to my brand with a promo update thrown in here and there. Interacting with my friends is crucial and fun too.
I browse the Kindle and Nook boards and forums. When I’ve finished reading a book, I’ll rate it on my Goodreads page. Goodreads is a gold mine for writers. There are hundreds, if not thousands of groups to join where you can simply interact and find potential readers of your target audience. That’s why having updates sent as daily digests is a gem. *g*
What I enjoy most of all is reading and commenting on blogs.
To me, blogs are more personable. You’re in a setting where you can chat directly with fellow bloggers about topics that interest you. It doesn’t feel like work when you’re chatting about your favorite books or authors you all love, or about the current post of the day.
Bloggers and their readers can get to know one another a little better because they aren’t like FB or Twitter where it seems everyone has something to say practically every minute. I have my blogs that I read and comment on regularly. Through reading the other comments, I’ve followed/friended or been followed/friended by other regular readers. This in turn, has led to tweeting or having my status retweeted. To track whether commenting on blogs is leading browsers to your site, Google Analytics is a wonderful tool to utilize.
On social media, good karma is a must. I treat my friends like friends whether they retweet or like or retweet my status updates or not. Replying, offering encouragement or a retweet can go along way, especially when it’s heart-felt.
There are so many promotional options out there for authors, it’s difficult to choose which will garner you the most sales. There’s no magic way to springboard you to the top of all the bestseller lists, though I’ve read some authors views on that. I do what works best for me. I have enough in my life that can stress me out, I refuse to let interacting with potential readers and authors be one of those things.
I used to see promotion as a chore, but it’s all in how you think of it. Yes, you have something to sell, (yourself), but there’s more to you than just what you write. You have to connect with people on a more intimate level than just “Hey buy my book.” It took me awhile to figure out what works best for me, but I think I’ve finally found it.
I’ll be at work today. I’d love to chat, but it’ll have to wait until later. I’ll respond as soon as I can! Thanks again to Amber for having me!
Thank you for sharing with us, Abbey! Readers, find out more about Abbey and her books at www.abbeymacinnis.com and tune in tomorrow for an excerpt from her latest romance, His Fifth Avenue Thief....
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